From ancient times, precious metal and other items of jewelry have seen extensive us in both civilized and aboriginal cultures. For example, necklaces, bracelets, and related items have been used in the western world since the earliest ancient times.
One of the primary problems involved in the fabrication of metal jewelry is the acute scarcity of materials, often silver and gold. In particular, the use of a relatively large amount of material, which would normally be required to make a significant impression, requires large amounts of precious metal and therefore results in a cost which makes jewelry of this sort prohibitive to all but the most well-to-do person. While there exists a great number of jewelry items made in such a way, as a result of economic pressures, many alternatives to jewelry which weighs as much as it appears to weigh have been found.
For example, in many cases, a bracelet may be made of a piece of sheet metal which is curved to fit around a wrist and which has its lateral edges turned inwardly to simulate a cylindrical or half-cylindrical configuration. The problem with such a structure is, of course, that it does not wear well and bending tends to deform the inwardly curving portion which gives the piece its dimensionality.
Another approach is epitomized by the so-called Navajo Indian silver-turquoise jewelry of the American Southwest. Here, silver is the customary material and the bracelets are made by taking flat pieces of material and bending them into a configuration which mirrors the shape of the wrist of the wearer. While such pieces do not have the dimensionality of other pieces, they are flexible and tend to wear well.
Yet another approach is the use of so-called half-hollow chains which comprise a number of links which are connected with each other and appear to be a solid chain, but due to their particular configuration, are not free to turn upside down to expose that the various links in the chain are hollowed out on the underside. While such an approach is quite effective, it suffers from the limitation of a limited range of possibilities in terms of appearance and does not lend itself well to the sleek integrated modern designs that are popular in jewelry today. Moreover, the individual parts of such a bracelet must be individually cast and a great deal of handwork is required to finish and assemble such bracelets.
Yet another approach is the use of a number of relatively thin and thus light and inexpensive parts which are linked to a central chain in a configuration often used as, for example, a charm bracelet. However, the lightness of the various parts is evident, upon inspection of the piece, and it fails to have the prestigious appearance of heavier pieces.
In an attempt to address some of these problems, I conceived a number of years ago a jewelry band material in which a tube was formed by eight smaller tubes which were swirled into individual interlocking helixes and then turned into a bracelet shape. This particular configuration was exceptionally valuable insofar as it gave the impression of a heavy solid sculptured band of gold or silver, has sufficient weight to fall properly when it was being worn and, at the same time, could be manufactured by machine and worked relatively inexpensively. However, this structure also had a tendency, when flexed, to stay in the changed position. Accordingly, this material, for many uses, is best employed with a hinge at the desired point of flexure.